Avoiding Responsibilities

This semester I quickly fell behind with my grading.  Once papers start piling up, it becomes more and more difficult to make the pile shrink.

I intended to grade today - I did manage to be productive yesterday - but it just didn't happen.  I didn't even look at a single paper.  In some ways, it is better for the students.  If I am not focused, I am more irritated.  The more irritated I am, the harsher grader I become.  

Of course, there is no guarantee that I will be feeling more focused or more charitable tomorrow or the day after.  Well, tomorrow I probably won't as I have an exam to give at 8:30 and then I have meetings.  

I enabled my procrastination by watching the Charlie Brown Chirstmas special tonight.  It had been ages since I watched the special.  I had always liked Peanuts and the special (in particular the music).  This time around I was amazed by the sophistication of the social commentary in the original special.  Sara, who was also watching, turned to me at one point and commented, "This isn't really for kids, is it?"  It is also amazing how relevant it is even today's society (it originally aired in 1965).  

Sara and I also joked about how all the Peanuts kids would be diagnosed with some disorder today and medicated in one way or another (or removed from their families and placed in foster care).  I even think it could be a new holiday party game: diagnose the Peanut kid.  

Oh, and the similarity between Snoopy and Zeus are uncanny.  Except that Snoopy is afraid of cats...